The holiday season is coming – caroling, Christmas lights and sweater weather. Typically, the time of the year wherein people usually thank all those people who have brightened up their life. This is also the time when almost all businesses are getting prepared to get their priorities straight when it gets down to sending out their business Christmas cards. One of the many types of businesses that can gain a lot from sending out business Christmas cards are real estate agents. Apart from being just a thoughtful gesture, real estate Christmas cards can also significantly increase the chances of customer retention – people who have been on the market to purchase a new property might also be on the market to sell it.
During the holidays, most if not all of your customers usually will attend different kinds of holiday parties since it is the peak of party season. Real estate agents can use these opportunities to stay at the front of the mind of the visitors who mingle with friends and family who are also in the business. Reaching out with a beautiful and personalize holiday card to former customers will certainly give a good impression and, as a result, they will be more inclined to share your services when the subject comes up during a conversation.
From the first Christmas card sent out by the notable professor and art donor, Henry Cole, in the winter of 1843, holiday cards are now considered as an American tradition, but it also something that can often cause a great deal of stress and pressure when the festive season is coming. Real estate Christmas cards are great opportunity to show people within your network your gratitude, but the more clients a business has, the more challenging it is to make it more personal and sincere in each card. It seems that customers are getting more cards every year which are cringe-worthy than the previous one. And more often than not, these cards will be the most remembered ones but all for the wrong reasons, and that is something that is very crucial that businesses will want to avoid when they send out their Christmas cards. Read on to get some tips on how to send the best real estate Christmas cards.
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Why send out holiday cards?
It is a great way to gain a positive impact in terms with business relationships aside from the obvious reason of just reaching out during the holidays and staying at the top of the minds of those within the same network. With today’s rise of brand value and consciousness, sending out Christmas cards to the clients will promote positive client relationships. Even with a little bit of acknowledgement and gratitude of goodwill can help in developing positive relationships with clients and, in the long run, can generate profits. The time taken to write and the effort in sending out the card will imply that you care for the customer and it will resonate well with them.
Develop Genuine Business Relationship During the Holidays
For businesses, the festive holidays are the best time to show respect and appreciation to clients. It has become much more essential to grow and develop a relationship with clients in growing a business, particularly in terms of clienteles and profitability. The emergent of consumerism awareness, consuming products which are manufactured in line with ethical standards such as fair labor, has led to a rise in a more customer-focused international business environment. The creation of products where emotional connections with clients are nurtured, according to Harvard Business Review, has the probability of increasing the number of clients up to forty percent (40%). The perfect way to build business relationships during the holiday season is through holiday greeting cards. According to research, every year, nearly two (2) billion actual cards and five hundred (500) million electronic Christmas cards are sent all over the country, however just sending out plain holiday cards would not do much for the business. It is down up to the smallest details wherein the greatest chance to cultivate an emotional relationship with the clients resides.
Expressing Greetings
The safest message to use would be “Happy Holidays!”. It is better to avoid mentioning “Christmas” or “Hanukkah” if not familiar with the religious affiliation of the client. It should include everyone, even to those who are not celebrating the holidays. It is also best to extend the message to say your appreciation, like “We are extremely thankful to have such a wonderful client like you. Happy Holidays from all of us here at Real Estate.” Be mindful also to avoid company promotions that might come off a way to hard sell – sweet and straightforward have always been better compared to a long advertising message.
Customize and Personalize
In terms of personalizing each card, acknowledging the clients by their names instead of just using “you” means absolutely a lot to the client. Messages which are handwritten are also preferred over those which are typed. The physical card’s quality is extremely important as superior quality of a card would indicate that a higher degree of personal attention was given. A photo of the whole team is also an alternative if a card is not an available option. Hand writing a sweet and personal message with the recipient’s name is recommended.
Specific logos of the company or pictures of real estate can also be integrated with the card. Nevertheless, if other graphics are preferred, just like the message, avoid picking out those which are depicting any special attention to a specific holiday.
Sending it Out
As cliché as it may sound, but timing is really everything, especially when it comes to sending out the holiday cards. A card you should be typically sent out not later than the second week of December. Send the cards out in time for the festive season and come January, it would now be the perfect time to strategize on how to make the new year great together with your business associates and clients.
